If you are having trouble finding relief from these intense, stressful times, a good scream may be just the medicine you need. You can even send that scream, shriek, or yell miles away… to Iceland! This may sound silly, but there is actual science and psychology behind why it works.
I can recall on many occasions where I was so angry or frustrated that I didn’t even have proper words to express the intense emotion I was experiencing. Even if I did find some words… they were not very nice ones, likely words that would have cost me my job, a friendship, or would come back to haunt me in some way. So rather than spew obscenities endlessly till I felt better, I will usually just sit in my car and scream, sometimes for a few minutes at a time. Most times, it actually does make me feel better. But why? According to psychology, screaming can help unlock those bottled up emotions, allowing you to work through them and let go.
You don’t have to limit yourself to screaming in your car though. Iceland is offering people the unique opportunity to send your scream to them! Simply record your scream, wail, or shriek on the “Let It Out” site and send it to Iceland. You scream will then be broadcast on speakers dropped in locations like the black sand beaches by Festarfjall, a mountain on Iceland’s southwestern coast, and the Snæfellsjökull glacier. These speakers are all set in remote locations where it won’t startle any neighbors or pedestrians. This might be a better place to let out a scream rather than inside a car because anyone in the parking lot passing by could easily be alarmed by those blood-curdling screams if they were in earshot.
The Let It Out site even lets you choose the destination of your scream fest, from seven locations across the island. The best part is that you get to hear your anger/frustration in real-time on the speakers’ live streams.
According to the London-based psychotherapist who consulted on this project, people aren’t equipped to deal with the feelings that we are having as a result of the pandemic and what it has done to our daily lives. Because we aren’t moving as much, there’s a physical build-up of emotion, which can cause depression and anxiety, and screaming allows that emotional blockage to shift. She also gave tips on the “proper” way to scream therapeutically. Scream from your diaphragm, rather than from your throat, and think about why you’re doing it because it needs to have a reason behind it.